I cut my linux-teeth on PowerMacs. OS X was going to be based on unix, so I thought I'd get a jump start on this new fangled stuff (I was 11 -- "It's a UNIX system...I know this!"). I remember an issue of Mac Addict arrived with a copy of LinuxPPC and an app that, through something that felt like witchcraft at the time, would let you boot into linux directly from Mac OS.

(Also, some random OS/2-powerpc history- https://www.os2museum.com/wp/os2-history/os2-warp-powerpc-ed... )

> Didn't IBM have OS/2 Warp for PowerPC CHRP systems coming out that later turned into vaporware?

It was developed, and pre-release versions were available to developers, but the whole "Workplace OS" initiative and OS/2-PowerPC was killed when it was obvious it wasn't going to meet with commercial success. Memory is fuzzy as to the specific sequence of events, but it's of a piece with the Pink/Taligent failures as well. I also recall performance not being too great. By the time Warp 4 was released, I think the IBM Personal Systems/PC hardware business had already signed a major OEM deal with Microsoft for Windows 95 and NT.

I know I saw at least one book sitting on a major retail bookstore shelf that was geared toward developers on the OS/2-PowerPC platform (sadly, after the platform was already dead).

Some of us in the early 90s had big hopes for CHRP and PowerPC, outside of the Mac universe.

In addition to the pretty good writeup at the link posted by kylek, some others (including CD images):

https://archive.org/details/os2-powerpc

http://www.edm2.com/index.php/OS/2_for_the_PowerPC:_The_Deve...

Upstream Linux continues to support Power Macs today.